Now things will really change! Eight members of the House Republican caucus combined with House Democrats to remove a Republican Speaker for the crime of … [checks notes] … allegedly working with Democrats.

And now, the House will grind to a halt while Republicans pick the next Speaker, who will still have to work with a Senate run by Democrats and a Democrat in the White House to accomplish anything other than investigations. Which, by the way, Kevin McCarthy already had operating.

On the plus side, Matt Gaetz got some fundraising done today, and wants everyone to know he’s proud to do so:

Matt Gaetz calling out members of Congress for being owned by “lobbyists and special interests.”

“I take no lecture on asking patriotic Americans to weigh in and contribute to this fight from those who would grovel and bend knee for the lobbyists and special interests who own… pic.twitter.com/bxofadpZSs

— Salem News Channel (@WatchSalemNews) October 3, 2023

Also, House Republicans made history today. And there’s a reason for that:

For the first time in U.S. history, the House voted to remove a speaker Tuesday, ousting Rep. Kevin McCarthy after a bloc of disaffected GOP colleagues joined with Democrats on a 216-210 vote.

One might think that such a move would have been reserved for a case of corruption or official malfeasance. That’s probably why no House majority since the founding has ever pulled this stunt in the past. Instead, Gaetz et al made the historical effort to decapitate their leadership because McCarthy wanted to pass a continuing resolution. What a radical!

So what comes next? Probably more epic faceplanting. Don’t take my word for it, either:

Rep. Patrick T. McHenry, R-N.C., was named speaker pro tempore immediately after the vote, and called for a recess to discuss the matter.

“The House will be paralyzed. We can expect week after week of fruitless [speaker] ballots while no other business can be conducted. The Democrats will revel in Republican dysfunction and the public will rightly be repulsed,” Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Calif., said before the final vote on McCarthy’s fate. “It will end when the Democrats are able to enlist a rump caucus of Republicans to join a coalition to end the impasse.”

Though McClintock predicted “this House will shift dramatically to the left,” other members interviewed this week said they did not yet see a solution — or a likely 56th speaker of the House.

Well, yes, that will be the most likely outcome, unless the eight House Republicans who created this mess suddenly reverse themselves and vote McCarthy back into the office. The rest of the caucus will not reward this behavior by electing a Gaetz-backed candidate, and they will likely push someone else who realizes that the GOP doesn’t control anything except the House.

The most likely way out of this impasse will be to find someone acceptable to enough Democrats to overcome the Rebel Alliance in the GOP. That’s what McClintock means, and that will be precisely where Gaetz et al will have led the Republican majority. And to get there, the GOP will likely have to give up its investigations into Biden Inc in order to get the House back underway.

House Republicans will meet in an hour or so to discuss their next steps. Good luck finding them.

Update: Looks like McCarthy’s had enough:

BREAKING NEWS — KEVIN MCCARTHY will not run for speaker again.

He is about to make the announcement in closed GOP meeting

w @bresreports

— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) October 3, 2023

If so, that leaves Steven Scalise, currently struggling with cancer, Tom Emmer, and Patrick McHenry [correction] as the obvious alternatives — all of whom defended and supported McCarthy. Stay tuned.

Update: McCarthy has confirmed he won’t enter the new Speaker election.